Home under the Southern Sun

In the Provence Vincent sought his own “Japan“, the land of his artistic dreams. What he in fact found there were motifs that reminded him of his home in the Netherlands. As for instance his drawbridge, which he committed to canvas all of four times. With these vibrant colours, van Gogh arrived at his own style. This spontaneity that is often credited to him is not, however, recognisable here. On the contrary, the painter studied the motif using a draughtsman’s grid – a lattice of threads mounted in a wooden frame.